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Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Wing Seong Fatty's Restaurant in Burlington Square, Singapore

The food scene has been more active than ever before especially in this part of the world. I can say that every day, one or two restaurants have been opening their doors to the hungry public upping one another in terms of creativity and gastronomic talent. We're living in a world where people are more conscious about the food that they eat. Quality is king, I'd like to believe. Food lovers are taking the forefront as they go about town in search for the newest and yummiest food find. I would know...I'm one of them! Haha!

Recently, I joined a couple of local food bloggers for an exclusive food tasting organized by Open Rice Singapore. Dinner was held at the very popular Wing Seong Fatty's Restaurant in Burlington Square. It was my first time to venture into this side of town thus I got a bit lost and had to walk a few meters more before I finally found the restaurant. How's that for some warm-up exercise?

Wing Seong Fatty's Restaurant, as I was told, was opened back in the 1920s. I was so surprised that a restaurant has lasted this long! Pretty amazing huh? It specializes in Cantonese cuisine but as dinner went on, I realized that it's more of a mix of Cantonese and Singaporean cuisine. Not quite like the ones we would have in Hong Kong.

Here are some of the dishes that we were able to enjoy that evening:

Jumbo Spring Rolls (S$3/roll)
What a steal right? These spring rolls are huge! Reminds me somewhat of the lumpiang togue that I love munching on during dismissal time back in high school. The only difference is this one has roast pork inside together with the beansprouts. Really good!

Seafood Horfun (S$14)
Horfun or what we commonly call Hofun is a flat white noodle cooked with thick "gravy" a.k.a. sauce. I normally shy away from horfun as I find it too oily and salty for my taste. My perception towards it has changed though after trying Wing Seong Fatty's Seafood Horfun which was really delicious! They were very generous with the seafood added into this dish and eating it was very comforting. The same kind of warm fuzzy feeling you'd get from a delicious plate of pasta or a bowl of soup. Yum!

Braised homemade beancurd with sauce (S$22)
This is probably the only dish that I had a teeny tiny serving of as I try to eliminate having soy and beancurds in my diet. From the looks of my dinner companions though, it seems like a pretty okay dish.

Stir-Fried Kailan with Meat (S$16)
I love a well-balanced meal. This means always having veggies to balance out all the meat and carbs in my meal. This Stir-Fried Kailan had a good crisp bite and it was very fresh. We were told that it's cooked with the chef's "secret ingredient" which to this day remains a mystery. Any guesses?

Chicken with Prawn Paste (S$22)
As I saw this dish, I knew instantly that should the opportunity come for me to take Paul and my in laws to try this restaurant, this is one thing that I'll make sure I'll order for them to try. Why? Being big fans of Mann Hann's Okiam Chicken and our very own manang's Binagoonan Chicken, I was pretty certain they'll like this too. Deep-fried and coasted with prawn paste, I love how the chicken remains crunchy on the outside and juicy inside. Luckily, the prawn paste wasn't salty at all allowing us to have a second piece or more. One large order is good for a party of 8-10.

Black Pepper Beef (S$22)
Now, this is my favorite! I really love sizzling peppery tender beef that's served with sliced onions. This is perhaps one of the few occasions you can get me to eat onions. More rice please!

Balachan Fried Rice (S$14)
Speaking of rice, Wing Seong Fatty's Balachan Fried Rice is definitely a must-try! Balachan is a local shrimp paste commonly used in Nonya/Peranakan dishes. This one is really tasty and I love love love it!

Sweet & Sour Pork (S$22)
I was actually surprised to see this popular dish as part of our dinner line-up that evening. You see, back in Manila, Sweet & Sour Pork is a common mainstay in most lauriats. Be it in the fanciest Chiense restaurant or the budget-friendly ones, Filipinos just love love love their Sweet & Sour Pork. Well, I guess that same love spread all over the region or even the world. This version of Sweet & Sour Pork as definitely leaner with less chewy fat portions (hooray!) however the sauce had the same thick, sticky and syrupy consistency.

Prawn with Oats (S$37)
If you love Cereal Prawns, then you'll adore this! The secret is to get a scoop of cereal/oats and pour them over your rice. I just love the sweet and milky flavor of the oats. This may be a bit more expensive, but take my word for it -- go and try it.

It was a delicious dinner and the service was superb. I somehow lost track of the number of times the owner, himself, has poured tea into my cup. I'm guessing that Wing Seong Fatty's started as a hawker stall or a Zi Char eatery (casual Chinese eatery) before it turned into a full blown air-conditioned restaurant. I shall return, Wing Seong Fatty's and thank you Open Rice Singapore for the invite!

Wing Seong Fatty's is located at Burlington Square, 175 Bencoolen Street, #01-34, Singapore. To get here, take the MRT up until Bugis station and walk heading towards Burlington Square/Sim Lim. You may also take the bus and alight in front of Ibis Bencoolen which is right across Burlington Square.